I am having problems trying to start my 67 442 after winter storage. I have a jump battery attached to my battery terminals and when I turn the key, I hear what I believe to be a clicking coming from the starter motor, but that is it. Interior accessory lights all go on, but all I get is a "click." The engine does not turn over, there is no indication of the starter solenoid engaging. Is this symptomatic of a bad starter motor, or do I have a short somewhere? Any recommendations are appreciated. Thanks!

 

Sounds like a bad connection. Make sure the terminals on the battery are clean and tight. Same at the horn relay junction block and the starter. If it still won't start, whack the side of the starter with a hammer. You may need some brushes or a solenoid.

 

Could be anything between the ignition switch and the start, which is quite a bit. Grab a wiring diagram and take a look. I had the same problem and it ended up being a short in the IGN wire on the back of my ignition switch...but I've also had problems with the wiring harness that goes from the solenoid to the junction block and back to the dash.

 

My money is on the solenoid.

 

I had the same problem after the car sat for the winter. The battery terminal at the solenoid needed cleaning and it started.
Rick

 

Thanks everyone, appreciate the recommendations! We'll see what happens...all the best.

 

As stated above, there could be any number of problems; after all, it is a car almost 50 years old....but, it sounds to me like a battery problem, such as bad battery, dirty connections, etc. You said "jump battery"....is the battery in the car dead, or perhaps low charge or old and "deceased"....??? Do you have a GOOD set of jumpers, or some piece of crap China jumpers from Autozone, etc. ??? Remember that a starter draws hundreds of amps of power, and all acessories can work, but not have enough power or good enough of a connection to turn over the engine! And proper winter storage requires that the battery be removed from the vehicle and maintained monthly on some sort of charger.

Make sure your battery is fully charged and good, and clean ALL connections, before you need to use "jumper cables"....they are for emergency only, and not suitable for everyday use. A properly maintained automobile and good clean battery/cables with a good charging system will NOT require anything else.

 

Basically good advice, but if the car is not where it gets extremely cold, the battery can be left in the car, but definitely should be disconnected. At which point I'll put in a pitch for disconnecting the battery for any car in storage, basically unless it is a daily driver. Shorts and fires are not rare, and it is a simple ounce of prevention.

And monthly charges are not needed if left on a float type charger (aka "battery maintainer"), *not* a trickle charger. And again, a *quality* one, don't cheap out.

 

Totally agree, wmachine! Good advice......don't "cheap out".....quality tools, parts, and equipment!!!

 

btw, so we are all on the same page, not all electrical faults are a "short"

there are bad connections, open circuits, etc.

Sounds to me like your battery is not feeding the solenoid large terminal well- cable or connections between battery and solenoid- or the solenoid is internally faulty- dirty contact plate is common.

The click you hear is probably the solenoid actuating or half-actuating. This indicates the problem is probably not the starter/ solenoid ground path back to the battery, though it's possible for that path to conduct a little electricity and click the solenoid, yet fail to conduct the large current draw required for the starter motor itself.

 

Thanks for all the input everyone. I swapped batteries, disconnected the coil, and sure enough, cranked aggressively a few times. Reconnected the coil, pumped the accelerator once fully, then half way down, and "fwaaumph" -- lit up like a charm! Nothing like the aroma of Sunoco 104 and a good cup of coffee :-)

 

That was easy.